Consumer Behavior

Swapping mothers on Facebook: The process of collaborative consumption of children's clothes

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Abstract

Collaborative consumption is a phenomenon of people coordinating acquisition and distribution of a resource for a fee or other compensation (Belk, 2014). The purpose of this study was to explore consumers' collaborative consumption experiences within a Facebook swap group. Special attention was paid to provide detailed description of collaborative consumption experiences during three stages of the process (before, during, and after) in the context of mothers swapping children's clothes. A total of 20 mothers in a Facebook swap group were interviewed. To facilitate successful swapping experience and to build trust, swapping groups on Facebook had strict policies/ rules that require their members to abide by. As a seller, mothers went through many steps from clothing selection, preparation, to shipping boxes of clothes to the buyer. As a buyer, mothers used various criteria to build trust of the seller. The findings of this study provide implications to marketers and consumers.

How to Cite:

Mun, J., (2017) “Swapping mothers on Facebook: The process of collaborative consumption of children's clothes”, International Textile and Apparel Association Annual Conference Proceedings 74(1).